Communism

The Red Scare

It began in 1919 in the US after revolutionaries in Russia overthrew the Czarist regime. Vladimir 1st started a new communist state. They waved red flags and wanted to abolish capitalism. A communist party of 70,000 people formed in the US. bombs were mailed to the government and business leaders. Everyone was scared the communists would take over. US attorney general A. Mitchell Palmer took action to combat this scare.

Palmer Raids

Palmer and J. Edgar Hoover hunted down suspected communists, socialists, and anarchists. They invaded homes, offices, and put people in jail and didn't allow them legal counsel. Foreign born suspects were deported without trials. The raids never found evidence of a revolutionary conspiracy. The public decided Palmer didn't know what he was doing.

Sacco and Vanzetti

They were arrested and charged with robbery and murder of a factory paymaster and his guard. The accused were Italian and it was during the time of the red scare. People had prejudices against foreigners. They died in the electric chair on August 23, 1927. They were arrested in May 1920.

Ku Klux Klan

They were devoted to 100% Americanism. By 1924, membership reached 4.5 million "white male persons, native born gentile citizens." They believed in keeping blacks "in their place" and driving Roman Catholics, Jews, and foreign born people out of the country. They were paid to recruit new members.

Emergency Quota Act

Impact of the Automobile

It changed America. Paved roads (Route 66) was a visible effect. It changed architecture (houses/garages). Launched construction (gas stations, car shops etc.) The first automatic traffic signals were in Detroit in 1920s. Cars helped rural families and people could vacation easier. Workers could live miles from work, resulting in urban sprawl as cities spread in all directions. And it definitely helped the economy.

Appliances

Electricity transformed the nation. by the end of the 1920s, people had electric irons, refrigerators, cooking ranges, and toasters. These appliances helped housewives, and coincided with women working outside the home.

Installment Plans

Birth of a Nation

1915 was the first blockbuster movie. First time Hollywood sees how much money they could make from movies. Everyone had to see it. It was about good triumphing over evil. They used the KKK as good, and the blacks as bad. Sadly, Woodrow Wilson loved it.

Margaret Sanger

Radio

F. Scott Fitzgerald

He wrote "This side of Paradise" and "The Great Gatsby" to show the negative side of the period's gaiety and freedom, portraying wealthy and attractive people leading imperiled lives in gilded surroundings.

Overproduction

Credit

People were spending money beyond their means. They bought goods on credit, where they agreed to buy now and pay later. Usually this was in the form of an installment plan (monthly payments) and interest charges.

Uneven Distribution of Income

During the 1920s, the rich got richer. More than 70% of families earned less than $2,500 a year, barely enough to survive. Most American families couldn't participate fully in the economic advances of the 1920s.

Black Tuesday

Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act

In 1930, congress passed this act, which established the highest protective tariff in US history. It was designed to protect American farmers and manufacturers from foreign competition. But it had the opposite effect. By reducing the flow of goods into the US, the tariff prevented other countries from earning American currency to buy American goods. World trade fell by 40%. (Tariff= tax on imported goods)

Bonus Army

Veterans from WWI told the government they suffered and deserved a bonus for serving during the war. So the government said they would give them a bonus in several years. But when the great depression hit, the veterans couldn't provide for their families. So they went to the white house demanding to get their bonus right then. President Hoover wouldn't give them their bonus. This caused quite a commotion, and two veterans ended up dead, and a baby also died.

Okies

Direct Relief

Cash payment or food provided by the government to the poor. This was not around during the early years of the Great Depression. Sadly there was no direct relief. Some cities and charities helped a little, but it wasn't enough to feed everyone.

Hoover's Philosophy

He believed that one of the government's chief functions was to foster cooperation between competing groups and interests in society. He also believed in individualism: people should care for themselves. He opposed federal welfare. This made suffering American's upset.

Reconstruction Finance Corporation

This was approved by Congress in 1932. It authorized up to $2 billion for emergency financing for banks, life insurance companies, railroads, and other large businesses. Hoover believed that the money would trickle down to the average citizen through job growth and higher wages. In the first 5 months, the RFC loaned $705 million but business continued to fail.